Carbohydrates (CHO)

Carbohydrates (CHO) are sugar-based molecules. Complex carbohydrates are
chains of sugar molecules and are found in plant foods everywhere. Starch is a
polymer or long string of glucose molecules, just as a protein is a long string
of amino acids. Starch-containing plants are the universal staple foods.
Carbohydrates include low caloric, low glycemic vegetables such as salad greens
and plant fibers that have many health benefits.

Sugar has been blamed for all manner of health problems, often without
justification. Many people who contact us with sugar concerns are misinformed
and confused about the role of sugar in the body. They cannot differentiate
among different kinds of sugar. They have not learned that glucose runs every
cell alive on planet earth.
See Low Carbo Madness

Glucose, like oxygen and water is essential to life, but too much in the
wrong place, at the wrong time can be harmful. The basic principle of life is
that the right molecules have to be delivered to the right place at the right
time. This principle is used to formulate elemental nutrient formulas such as
Alpha ENF.

The idea is that glucose and fructose supply the energy that the body needs;
the sugars are combined with all other nutrients following an ideal
proportioning plan. If glucose utilization is impaired as in diabetes, then the
rate of glucose absorption becomes critical. Small frequent doses will often be
better utilized and high blood sugar peaks are avoided.

Human action is an expression of biological energy derived from food. Living
cells are glucose-burning machines. Animals take advantage of the ability of
plants to manufacture sugar and other nutrients. The energy, which supports us,
is locked into the molecular bonds of a few basic fuel molecules: glucose,
fructose, fatty acids, and amino acids. The energy is released as the
energy-supplying molecules are dismantled by oxidation. Food-derived energy
allows us to move, to do work by muscle contraction, and to keep warm. Body heat
is generated by the metabolic activity of every cell. Carbohydrates and fats are
the principle sources of energy; amino acids may be utilized as energy when
glucose intake is limited or glucose utilization is impaired as in diabetes.

Some tissues such as muscle require insulin to absorb sugar. Other organs,
such as the brain, do not require insulin and are prime glucose consumers. The
liver tries to maintain blood sugar levels within a narrow normal range by
either absorbing or releasing sugar. The liver stores sugar as glycogen and is
also capable of producing sugar from amino acids if food does not supply
adequate sugar. Slow absorption of sugars is better tolerated than the rapid
absorption of larger amount. Complex carbohydrates in vegetables are ideal
sustained-release sources of sugar.

Carbohydrates are energy and structural molecules produced by plants. Glucose
is the key molecule in living systems and life is built around glucose and its
related sugars. Plant foods are essential to animal life and form the bulk of
most human diets. Rice, wheat, potatoes, yams, cassava, and corn are the world's
most important staple foods. In the US, about 15% of agricultural production is
devoted to vegetable cultivation. High-starch vegetables tend to be roots or
tubers like potatoes, yams, turnips, winter squash, carrots, and beets. Yams and
sweet potatoes are high-caloric root vegetables. Fruits tend to have a high
sugar content, mostly glucose, fructose and sucrose. Fruit juices have the
highest free sugar content of all plant foods except for sugar cane which stores
sugar in its stalk. The green leafy vegetables are more chemically diverse and
interesting foods that supply less digestible carbohydrate but more vitamins,
minerals, and non-digestible fiber. The seeds of 30 or so common legume species
are important vegetables, since they are cheap, available and are high in
protein and fatty acids.

Sugars The principal sugars are glucose and fructose. These are the simplest
CHO molecules, known by their single ring structure as monosaccharides. Glucose
is the fuel of all living things, supplying energy to all living cells, both
plant and animal. The creation of glucose begins in plants with the magic of
photosynthesis. The sun's photons are the original energy source used by the
chloroplasts of leaves to drive carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms together to
form glucose. Plants then use the newly synthesized glucose to fuel all their
other synthetic processes, constructing tissues so that animals have food to
eat. Fructose is the first cousin of glucose and occurs in fruit and corn syrup
.

Sucrose is the sugar that is commonly called "sugar", often with negative
connotations. Sucrose is the dominant sugar in most of our sweeteners, and it
appears in refined form as white table sugar. Brown sugars and molasses are
cruder sugar products which contain the same sucrose in the presence of many
other substances not yet removed. The preference for brown sugars, syrups,
molasses, and honey, in place of refined white sugar is not based on any
important biological information. White table sugar, sucrose, has the advantage
of containing less extraneous molecules and contaminants. Honey is preferable
only by taste and implication (visions of bees, flowers, and summer days); it
contains the same sugars, glucose, sucrose and fructose. Honey also contains
bees' wings, legs, poop, pollens, and other assorted hive contaminants, and may
offer some allergic reactions to sensitive individuals. Honey also carries the
spores of the botulinus bacteria and should not be fed to infants since the
spores can germinate in their intestine producing the deadly botulinus toxin. I
personally prefer honey by taste, implication, and a lingering identification
with Winnie the Pooh.

Fructose The intake of fructose has increased with the increased consumption
of processed foods that are sweetened with sucrose, fructose itself and
high-fructose corn syrup. In the US, fructose intake increased by 61% in adults
from 1977 to 1997; sugar sweetened soft drinks became the largest single food
source of calories in the US diet. High fructose corn syrup intake increased
from 0 kg to 29 kg per person per year. Naturally occurring fructose intake from
fruits remained unchanged. A US study involving 21,483 US adults and children
found that a typical diet contains high fructose concentrations providing more
than 10% of energy intake. Most of the fructose is added to soft drinks and
processed foods and acts as an appetite stimulant. Adolescents (12 - 18 years of
age) had the highest intake (72.8 g/day, or 12.1% of total energy intake). For
25% of adolescents, at least 15% of energy consumed came from fructose.
Sugar-sweetened beverages were the largest source of fructose (30%) followed by
grains (22%) and fruit or fruit juice (19%). Dansinger stated: "The addition of
sucrose and high-fructose corn syrup (which are both 50% fructose) to processed
foods and beverages is a major cause of the increased caloric intake from the
calories in the sugars added to foods that already have high calorie counts,
such as doughnuts and ice cream. This drives much of the obesity epidemic."

Fructose does not require insulin to enter cells. The idea that fructose is a
good sugar for diabetics has several flaws, however. In mice and rats both high
sucrose and fructose intakes create insulin resistance. Thresher et al concluded
that fructose is the primary nutrient mediator of sucrose-induced insulin
resistance and glucose intolerance.

Increased fructose intake appears to increase atherosclerosis and the risk of
heart attacks. Bantle, for example, placed 18 Type I (insulin-dependent) and
Type II (noninsulin-dependent) diabetics on two diets: one contained
carbohydrate as starch (glucose), and the other contained carbohydrate as
fructose. When they consumed the fructose, the diabetics had fewer spikes in
blood sugar levels. However, the diabetics' total cholesterol rose an average 7
percent, and their low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol rose almost 11
percent.

Sakai et al identified several mechanisms by which fructose could accelerate
the complications of diabetes. They concluded: “…fructose accelerated the
production of advanced glycation end-products more than glucose. In addition,
fructose enhanced the reactive oxygen or oxygen radical generation and the
associated degeneration of proteins and lipids. These actions of fructose
appeared to be due to the formation of dicarbonyl compounds such as
3-deoxyglucosone, a highly reactive intermediate product formed in the advanced
glycation stage. These results suggest that fructose is closely involved not
only in glycation but also in the polyol pathway and peroxidation reactions
through free radical formation. Thus, fructose is considered to be a more
critical reducing sugar associated with the progression of diabetic
complications than it has been thought until now.”

Carbohydrate Polymers: Polysaccharides

Large carbohydrate molecules form the structure of plants, and to a lesser
extent, animals. A carbohydrate polymer, or polysaccharide, is a string of sugar
molecules linked together. The cell walls of plants are constructed of elaborate
polysaccharides made from 12 basic sugars. Cellulose is the main structural
carbohydrate; it is a polymer of glucose units linked together to form a tough
fiber. Vegetarian ruminants utilize special stomachs which host bacterial
populations that break down cellulose.

Starch is the most valuable polysaccharide. The starch molecule is tree-like,
with branches of varying length. Starch digestion begins in the mouth with
salivary amylase, continuing in the small intestine with pancreatic amylase.
Short chains of glucoses are referred to as alpha-dextrin, maltotriose (3GL),
and maltose (2GL). Glucoamylase breaks these short chains down to individual
glucose molecules which are absorbed. Starch is the best fuel, supplying
sustained-release glucose.

Fiber There are several different types of carbohydrate polymers in fruit and
vegetables that we are unable to digest. This material passes through the GIT as
bulk fiber, undergoing modification and digestion by colon microorganisms.
Several fibers have benevolent roles. The benefit seems to be the absorption or
neutralization of the toxicity of other foods. Carbohydrate fiber contributes to
the well-hydrated bulk of soft, easily-passed stools. Increased dietary fiber
over a lifetime is associated with decreased incidence of bowel cancer and
cardiovascular disease.

The colon's dense population of microorganisms are important in health and
disease. The bacteria feed mostly on undigested carbohydrate, and 99% of them
survive best in the absence of oxygen (anaerobic bacteria). It is estimated that
10-15% of starch from cereal grains, potatoes, and up to 50% of milk sugar in
most adults enters the colon undigested where all the carbohydrates are
fermented by colon bacteria. Many vegetables contain indigestible carbohydrate,
welcomed by the colon flora. The gas associated with beans is mostly methane
produced by the fermentation of carbohydrates. Colon fermentation also produces
hydrogen gas, which may distend the colon and produce pain. Hydrogen, methane
and carbon dioxide are odorless gases. The foul smells of colon gas are mostly
volatile substances produced by the putrefaction of undigested protein. One can
use the sniff-test to assess the colon's protein-carbohydrate balance: smelly
gas reveals increased protein putrefaction and increased body ammonia, whereas
non-odorous gas indicates healthier carbohydrate fermentation.

Many chemical substances are produced by colon bacteria and may be absorbed
into the body. Some products are desirable, like the vitamins K, and Biotin.
Other products are, nutrients like fatty acids which supply a small percentage
of the calories extracted from food. Yet other substances produced in the colon
may be undesirable and these include alcohols, lactic acid, and formate. The
unpleasant smelling colonic gases are also absorbed and excreted by the lungs,
giving the exhaled breath an unpleasant smell (halitosis). No amount of
mouthwash, gum, or widely advertised candies will alter malodorous breath from
colon gases, but diet revision can correct the problem.

The role of the colon as a metabolic organ is not well understood. One
important metabolic role is the regulation of the body ammonia burden. Ammonia
(NH3) is derived from dietary protein, the principle source of nitrogen in the
body. Nitrogen freed from protein breakdown is toxic and must be excreted.
Ammonia poisoning may occur in a variety of circumstances, especially liver
disease. Subtle degrees of ammonia intoxication may be a cause of brain
dysfunction in otherwise normal people. A generous intake of dietary fiber, as
indigestible carbohydrate, aids colon bacteria in incorporating ammonia in their
own structure and metabolism and results in a lower body ammonia burden.

Diets, deficient in fiber, and high in protein, produce the opposite effect -
increased body burden of ammonia. Patients suffering liver disease with elevated
blood ammonia are improved by the oral intake of lactulose, an indigestible
carbohydrate which increases bacterial protein synthesis.

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